24V amplifiers - suggestions

[MapisM]

The converter for feeding 12V to the car stereo amplifier on my boat is going nuts.
Considering its age, I guess I can't complain, but since also the amp is by now stone age stuff, considering the development rate of electronic components, I was thinking if rather than replacing the converter it doesn't make sense to look for a 24V amp.
I suppose there must be some around, if nothing else for trucks, but I never looked for them.
Any knowledge/experience/suggestion around?
I don't need anything special, but it should be able to drive two couples of speakers.
Actually, the existing amp is probably among the biggest stuff available when the boat was built, at 4x100W, but I've never used it at more of 20% or so of its power...

PS: before anyone mention, nope, I don't want a 220V amp, because on my boat all equipment requiring continuous power (essentially fridges) are 24V DC, therefore I don't have any inverters onboard, and obviously I wouldn't want to run the genset just to enjoy some music while having dinner in a nice and silent bay!

 

[henryf]

I would imagine you'll be buying from the US.

People like Pyle produce them.

http://www.pyleaudio.com/sku/PLTA18...4-Volt-TruckBusRV-Bridgeable-Mosfet-Amplifier

Henry

Edited to say somewhat cheaper here
http://www.amazon.com/Pyle-PLTA180-Channel-Bridgeable-Amplifier/dp/B0071I16DY

H.

 

[MapisM]

Interesting bit of kit, thanks.
Otoh, while it's much more than enough in terms of power, it seems capable to drive only one pair of speakers, therefore I should fit two of them...
But even more important, I see that it has two big(ish) vent openings, which leads me to think that it produces some substantial heat.
Which is a bit of a problem, 'cause I should install it (/them) in an enclosed space.

While in Amazon, I searched for other 24V stuff, and found this other very simple/small amp:
http://www.amazon.com/SA-50-TDA7492...3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1373274660&sr=1-3
I would think that a couple of them could tick all the boxes, including the heat constraint.
Just wondering how stable the 24V power supply is supposed to be, 'cause obviously onboard the voltage can be anywhere from 24 to 27...

 

[henryf]

A really crappy Chinese description which pretty much tells you nothing.

Depending on the impedance rating of your speakers it may be possible to power more than one set from a 2 channel amplifier.

Henry

 

[noelex]

Interesting bit of kit, thanks.
Otoh, while it's much more than enough in terms of power, it seems capable to drive only one pair of speakers, therefore I should fit two of them...
But even more important, I see that it has two big(ish) vent openings, which leads me to think that it produces some substantial heat.
Which is a bit of a problem, 'cause I should install it (/them) in an enclosed space.

While in Amazon, I searched for other 24V stuff, and found this other very simple/small amp:
http://www.amazon.com/SA-50-TDA7492...3?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1373274660&sr=1-3
I would think that a couple of them could tick all the boxes, including the heat constraint.
Just wondering how stable the 24V power supply is supposed to bhe, 'cause obviously onboard the voltage can be anywhere from 24 to 27...

The T class amps are almost universally pretty good. Usually great sound, very low power consumption and low cost.

The 12v models ( wich are more common) are a bit sensitive to voltage and caution is needed above 14v. No idea about the 24v models. You can use a diode or two as a crude means of dropping the voltage but long term I think a 12v power supply would be a better option.

 

[MapisM]

long term I think a 1v power supply would be a better option.

1v power supply? Wazzat?
Btw, if I should still have any sort of voltage converter and/or power regulator, then I could as well replace the 24V -> 12V converter and keep the old amp...
The whole idea was to take the opportunity to make the installation simpler, along the philosophy that anything you don't have onboard, doesn't break!

 

[vas]

but MM,

do you REALLY need an amp when you say you use them at a small portion of their power?
yes I know a large lazy amp can drive speakers nicely but then you got to match various things like sensitivity of speakers etc...
Most car stereos have 4X50 nominal, or if you're lucky 4X20W RMS. With the right speakers the system can sing (ok, no hi-end stuff here...) without any extra bulky amps.
OTOH, if the amp is far away from the head unit, then there's another thing to consider since preamp signal travels nicely longer distances compared to speaker cables. I know I spent more than I should to get decent quality long runs of speaker cables as I don't want to go to preout=power amp route, got enough trouble as it is atm

cheers

V.

 

[noelex]

1v power supply? Wazzat?

Whoops! Sorry, thanks for picking up the error. That should have been 12v. I have edited the post.

The small 24v-12v converters are not very expensive and will allow for easy, cheap and reliable replacement of the amplifier in the future.

The T class amps are still a good option, but perhaps more for those that value sound quality and electrical efficiency.

 

[MapisM]

Well, I do appreciate simplicity and efficiency, particularly with boats.
That's what inspired my initial idea of changing the amp rather than replacing the converter, to start with.
I'm sure digital amps would be great in this respect (I'm very happy of an ICE powered Rotel amp I've got at home for the multiroom system, incidentally).
Just wondering if I could feed them directly from the onboard 24DC...
Do you have an idea of how to check the voltage range which these things can tolerate?

 

[MapisM]

do you REALLY need an amp when you say you use them at a small portion of their power?
...
Most car stereos have 4X50 nominal, or if you're lucky 4X20W RMS.

Yep V, for the very simple reason that I don't have ANY car stereo.
The system is designed to accept multiple sources, both audio and video, either through direct connection or via Apple TV.
And of course, neither mobile phones (or other MP3 readers), nor notebook PCs can drive external speakers by themselves.

 

[vas]

Yep V, for the very simple reason that I don't have ANY car stereo.
The system is designed to accept multiple sources, both audio and video, either through direct connection or via Apple TV.
And of course, neither mobile phones (or other MP3 readers), nor notebook PCs can drive external speakers by themselves.

doh! stupid of me, I was assuming (wrongly) that you had a main headunit (that's typically self amplified)

Hm, if you find a decent solution, I may follow your steps as I currently have an oldish 1U Blaupunkt radiocd but PLENTY of space under the dash to store various bits of kit (if the price's right...)

cheers

V.

 

[MapisM]

if you find a decent solution, I may follow your steps...

I'll surely let you know.
I'm thinking to give those small T-class amps a try, feeding them directly from the 24V onboard system.
After all, the sudden lack of music would work perfectly also as an alarm, so no need to worry about whether the thing(s) is/are still working or blew out...